Perhaps this megapost should have waited a little long in order to have putrefied somewhat, but throwing caution to the gusts I decided to "bless" you with one of a whole lot sooner than I'm sure most of you would have expected/wanted. Not that there's that much that you'd care to hear from me when it comes to soapbox time, but I'll give it a whirl.
As far as existence goes I can't complain. Like I have been throughout my kiddiehood I'm not happy, but then again I'm not sad, at least until the right sorta triggering impulse pops in my mind making me go totally euphoric or downright depressed. The way things are during this stage in my existence at least I'm still conscious enough to watch forties-vintage Bugs Bunny cartoons in the evening which nowadays seems to be the only thing that'll put a smile on my face. Otherwise it's wake up in the morning wondering what sort of humiliation I'll have to suffer this day!
***
In olden times I woulda shown you my etchings...nowadays it's my AI creations! Anyway, here are some more AI wonders, this time showing the Germans celebrating their victory in World War II. Boy, don't those "swastikas" look just like the type you see in those fake hate crimes that pop up all the time?:
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OLD REST IN PIECES NEWS: Farewell to Ozzy Osbourne, a guy who
epitomized everything that was good about early-seventies heavy metal, and
everything that was bad from thereon in. Overall his passing in nothing but a
big yawn 'round my parts. As for Hulk Hogan well...to me his rise in wrestling
just happened to have coincided with the form's transformation
from straight-ahead lowbrow UHF fun 'n jamz to bigtime glitz entertainment that was about as much fun as the rest of those sparkle shows
passing as kick up your feet television. Think it was a
coincidence? And no tears are
being shed here for Tom Lehrer who was about as funny as a pincushion at a
nudist colony.
***
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|
| As you can see, the first meeting of the Chris Stigliano Fan Club was a success! |
***
Nothing out of the superspectacular to write about, but there are some
niceties to be found herein. Paul McGarry (who is now a grandpa which really makes me feel old!) sent me the "Thus" 'un and I bought
the rest. Robert Forward has also been sending me disques but I keep losing
them in the clutter...maybe next time? The way things are going probably
not!
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Lou Reed-LOU REED AT PICKWICK RECORDS - WHY DON'T YOU SMILE NOW 2-records
set (Light in the Attic Records)
In some ways it's downright strange that I'm paying megabucks for an album of
which I had spent mere pennies on (multiple times) at various flea markets
throughout the eighties. Just like I did when I bought those Flamin' Groovies
re-releases which I had procured for a mere buck apiece on way back during my
late-teenbo days.
But part with the hard-begged I did, and although most of
WHY DON'T YOU SMILE NOW is older than old news I gotta admire the
way it was re-packaged...double 12-inch set, one rec 33 and the other 45, with a booklet containing rare snaps telling us all about those strange pre-Velvet Underground
days when Lou Reed was working for none other'n Pickwick cranking
out all of those surf and drag songs that eventually went bootleg once Lou becamse a
household name in households I don't know if I'd wanna visit.
If it matters to you sound quality has been boosted and there's a bonus
unreleased track entitled "Sad Lonely Orphan Boy" that fits in with the 1964 swing of Top 40 jamz. And if it
really matters to
you (it does to me) the music contained's a fine enough introduction to things
that were gonna be in a year or two once the Velvet Underground got into
action and the recordings that were left behind by the likes of the Primitives and All Night Workers were finally "up-to-date" as if they would really ever be.
Wouldn't hurt you to get it even if you still own all of those old flea market
pickups like I do! Just hope you're rich enough (prices being very prohibitive these days).
***
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Here are two guys of German descent (and a friend who is not I guess) from
Paraguay who made their own records during the sixties/seventies cusp and even
managed to get some released. These recordings to tend to have a more
mid-sixties bent to 'em that sounds straight out of PEBBLES (with
various Mersey/Chad and Jeremy flashes), and given the tracks' self-produced
nature this 'un not so surprisingly remind me of the White Heat album I
reviewed in issue #20 of my very own crudzine. In some ways
POPS DE VANGUARDIA is similar to other cusp efforts like the
Hackamore Brick, It's All Meat and Sidewinders albums in the way they
re-channel mid-sixties accomplishment for early-seventies kids sick and tired
of BILLY JACK relevancy. Might be worth your latching onto.
***
Eye of the Storm's still cranking out these mini-LP cover styled Cee-Dees, and
even though this company is whatcha'd call "grey area" they're doing a pretty
good job of not being hassled by the man or whatever the hippies used to call
it. I guess that alla the material they're peddlin's pretty much PD by now but
whether or not it is, if you can find 'em, check out the better stuff this
"progressive rock" label is dishing out! I find the ones that I hold in my
grubbed up paws a whole lot more satisfying as far as quality and content go,
at least when it comes to the type of groups that catch my flitty fancies I
guess.
There's really nothing new as far as rare never before heard 'em Can tracks go
on RECYCLED 2, but if you're one of those
come-latelies who missed out the first time you have yet another chance I hope
you won't blow. This has some boff Malcolm Mooney-era tuneage (including the
"Sister Ray" remake/remodel of "Upduff's Birth") plus the live track with Tim
Hardin not forgetting the now-rare "Prehistoric Future" session which pretty
much got the balls rolling back '68 way.
Even if you already have these tracks this is all in a nice tasty package that
might save you some important Cee-Dee storage space. And considering how hard
it is for me to find my Can burns which already house this material firmly
planted within the grooves 'r whatever these things have
RECYCLED 2 sure helped out as far as me futilely searching through
an endless number of boxes in vain goes.
***
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I'm positive that Frank Zappa fired Elliot Ingber from the Mothers of
Invention not because his on-stage LSD excursion. That was just a ruse---Ingber was a
much better guitarist than Zappa and when the boss is upstaged you know heads
will roll! Great late-sixties West Coast sounds that echo early Beefheart as
well as a few other local purveyors of the newer moves in music coming out of
the place...heck, even the country whackoff tracks (including the
EASY RIDER standby "Don't Bogart That Joint" which I never
ever cared for that much if at all!) sound great in this stew. Big
surprise...a new and different version of the
WEASELS RIPPED MY FLESH fave "Oh No", here entitled "Oh No I Don't
Believe It" and you better...
***
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I'd be lying if I said I didn't have a shard of curiosity after reading this
'un mentioned in some book on the new English jazz that I came across during
my teenbo years. I think it was the presence of a prepared piano that caught
my attention (at the time I was reading up on everything I could get my hands
on re. John Cage --- finding his records was an entirely different matter!),
but when I finally played this after all them years well, it wasn't like I was
exactly
THIRLLED given the
music presented was more slick class 'stead of avgarde crunch, the kind that
DOWN BEAT used to skid shorts over back in those days when it sure
was hard for them to come to terms with alla that jazz vanguard music that was
making itself known.
Thankfully the presence of Ivor Cutler reciting/singing "The Dong With a
Luminous Nose" to an especially spry backdrop not to mention Norma Winstone's
jazz vocals on an arrangement featuring a trio of writings from Yeats, Joyce
(yech!) and little girl lover Lewis Carroll redeem the treacly sounds
that start this thing off. The bonus track "National Anthem & Tango" was
best left off the original but it finally makes its appearance if only for
historical purposes.
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There were hundreds of these locally-made high school rock 'n roll records
back inna sixties, and some of them were good while others were strictly
grade-z turdsville. Thankfully this 1968 record was better than anything I
would have expected to come out of suburban slobsville at the time, thankfully
being void of the creeping hippie modes or singer-songwriter sensitivity that
was overtaking the minds of youthdom much to the determent of
TRUE TEENBO AESTHETICS. Even to the less initiated ear these would sound more 1966 High School
Friday Night School Gym rather than 1968 protest and draft card burning what
with spiffy covers of the Byrds, Spencer Davis and Bacharach intermingled with
originals that have more to do with 1963 Beatles than they do the late-sixties
variation. Even Tim Warren would approve and
YOU better as well!
***
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I should have burned more of these Alien Planetscapes recordings back when
they were available for free on the late Doug Walker's website but eh! This
particular release has two long workouts from the group recorded in the
early-nineties featuring Walker and his ever-changing lineup including John
Cordes from the Sub Zero Band (I reviewed their only as far as I know album a
few months back) on violin and mandolin. Like each and every other Alien
Planetscapes recording I've heard, these improvs are highly reminiscent of a
whole load of past accomplishments from F/i to Hawkwind and a variety of
cosmic German groups. Long and spacey yet sonically colorful (ooh!) and
downright intriguing even if you're one who doesn't get lost in the sonic ebb
and tide only with a little help from your friends. If you've never looked
into these guys despite my incessant yammering maybe now is the time to put
your personal hatred aside and listen to ol' Chris for once in your pathetic
existences!
***
If you're still comatose after reading the above, you can always become
comatose even more by buying up one or hopefully more back issues of BLACK TO COMM which as you can see are readily available with one mere click of the
highlighted area a few words back. Hope this is incentive enough to get you
turdburgers opening up your wallets and your minds in the process because from
what I can tell (comments left on this blog etc.) you guys really
NEED these!
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